Does she love me back?
by MarySai3
Summary: And now that Sakura and Naruto secretly loves each other, will either one of them tell?...Find out and don't forget to review afterwards!
1. Awkwardness Between The Two

**Awkwardness Between The Two**

'Is it just me, … or am I really, deeply in love with Sakura…?' Naruto thought as he watched his beloved try and carefully medicate his injured ankle from Naruto's past battle against Sasuke a while back.

While Sakura focused on Naruto's injury, Naruto focused on her. He just loved the girl's glowy, pink hair, her lovely, light-green eyes and Naruto most loved Sakura's darling smiles.

'Oh, Sakura, I wish I could tell you how I really, _really_ felt about you!" Naruto screamed in his thoughts.

Is it the right time to tell Sakura how Naruto felt towards her? Naruto looked around their surroundings, seeing if anybody was present except for Sakura and himself.

Their leader, Yamato, was off searching for useful resources for the squad to use in the following night under the stars, while Sai, another comrade, was fast asleep just behind Sakura. The boy figured it was the right moment to release his inner feelings.

…While the young Uzumaki was about to make his move… Sakura's eyes switched from focused to calm and relaxed.

"There you go, Naruto. You're all fixed, but you're not fully recovered yet, so you just take it easy, all right?" Sakura smiled as her concentrated chakra slowly disappeared in the palm of her hand.

Naruto gazed upon Sakura's firm smile.

'What an angel…' he thought and burst out, "Wow, thanks Sakura, I feel much better now!"

Naruto smiled back at the 'angel.' Then he slowly tried to stand up on his own, but his body resisted, so he weakly sat back down, leaning against a tree while Sakura accompanied him.

"You've got to be careful, Naruto. You could've been killed back there. If it weren't for Sai saving your butt, who knows what would've happened…" Sakura went on and on nagging about how Naruto needs to be careful towards his body and not to under-estimate his opponents. The girl practically sounded just like a mother giving a lecture to a mere child… but in Naruto's eyes, she was some-what different… The Uzumaki, again, described her as an 'angel.'

When Sakura finally stopped lecturing… Naruto, again, attempted to tell the young Haruno his true feelings.

But, again…failed…as Sakura started talking again.

Naruto had gotten frustrated but when he heard what Sakura had to say… he nearly froze…at the sound of the word, Sasuke, escaping out of her mouth, through her lips.

"You know, Naruto. I still remember the old _Sasuke_ back when we were little…"

_Sasuke_… that word… that name….

Naruto had nearly forgotten Sakura's true loved one. It was simply Sasuke, not he.

Both teammates gazed into blank space. Both thinking different thoughts.

Will Naruto ever express his inner feelings towards Sakura? … And will Sakura forget all about Sasuke… at all?

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	2. Sai Knew All Along?

**Sai Knew All Along?**

Naruto snapped out of his daydreaming. Now that Sakura made the young boy remember whom she truly loved, Naruto retreated on his attempt to tell Sakura he loved her.

As Sakura continued gazing into space, Naruto bowed his head down and negative thoughts came rushing through his mind.

'Snap out of it, Naruto! You can still have a chance with her. You just got to believe in yourself.'

As Naruto tried to cheer himself up, he couldn't resist letting go of the thought that, 'Sasuke was the one who is in Sakura's heart… who she truly desired… and who she wanted for a…' Naruto felt strong pressure at the pit of his stomach at his next thought, '…boyfriend.'

The Uzumaki caught a glimpse at the young Haruno.

Naruto wondered what Sakura had seen in the Uchiha. Although he was once his best friend, how could she love someone who betrayed his own village, who left his comrades just to have revenge? How could she love someone like him… how could she even like… 'No!' Naruto thought, he needs to stop having such nonsense thoughts about Sakura and Sasuke, his own friends…well, friend that is. He was confused of whether to call Sasuke a friend or not…

'You just got to relax, Naruto.' Letting out a sigh.

Maybe it wasn't the right moment to tell her after all…

Several moments later, the sun was almost out of sight, Sakura had fell asleep and Yamato sensei was back with food and other resources from his search in the forest.

"What's wrong, Naruto… you look some-what depressed. Is something bothering you?" Yamato questioned with worry in his voice.

Naruto did not want his sensei to have any concern, so he gave Yamato a rather fake smile and said, "No, I'm all right, sensei. Don't worry about a thing. I've never been better!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head and let out a nervous laugh.

Yamato have the boy a suspicious look and continued to search the ground for somewhere to sleep. "All right then, Naruto. Get some rest for tomorrow."

Naruto smiled at his sensei but it didn't last long as he looked at Sakura's sleeping face beside him.

Was Naruto a fool taking the chance to reveal himself…?

As the night drew close and darkness overcame the squad's surroundings, everyone decided to take it in for the day and get some good sleep, but since they still did not manage to get to know the forest that well, the fellow teammates had alerted their quick senses for some unexpected danger that might crawl the night.

"Don't worry, guys! From the searching I've been through this forest all day, I didn't get to see any danger or mischief, whatsoever. I think we'll get a pretty good chance of having a good night's sleep tonight." Yamato sensei said as he comforted the team.

Everyone felt relieved except for Sai, who appears to have no emotion to show at all.

Moments later, almost everyone was asleep, except for Naruto. Something in his mind was keeping him awake…

…'Sasuke…'

Naruto glared at the stars above him as he faced the dark-blue sky with both of is arms at the back of his head acting as a pillow.

Too many thoughts filled his aching head…

He once remembered the old days; how Sasuke, Sakura and himself were in D, C, B and even A-ranked missions with Kakashi sensei, having all the fun in the world.

'Yup! Those were the day.' Naruto thought as he continued reminiscing about the past.

Naruto turned his body sideways, facing Sakura. Was it best to tell her? … Or should he, again, wait a little longer, like what he _has _been doing for the past three years.

It was such a long, hard night for the young ninja…

"Oh, man. I have got to get some sleep… stop thinking about her, Naruto. We still got a long way if we're going to get Sasuke back. You made a promise and a true ninja never goes back on his word… You'll still have a chance with her… somehow." As Naruto whispered to himself, he suddenly heard Sai, turning his body sideways, facing the forest.

He tried carefully to look at Sai's face, but since Sakura is between the two men, Naruto would have to stand up and walk to be able to see Sai. And since he had an injured ankle, he couldn't take the risk of trying to walk with it. Plus, it would make too much noise for everyone to wake up. So he aborted instead.

Once the Uzumaki finally got tired of thinking, his eyes slowly closed and his brain just shut down and finally fell asleep.

…It was Sai's turn to have the night to himself.

Sai opened his eyes and got up. He leaned against a tree behind him. The beautiful crescent moon had shown and with its amazing glow, it struck Sai's face, showing his beautiful pale skin. The moon definitely complimented him.

He looked up at the night sky and his eyes quickly switched on the image of his teammates beside him. He knew, at that moment, that there was something both Sakura and Naruto had in common…

And it was…

(Snores)…

Naruto snored for a moment and turned his back on the left side of his body. Just seeing him snore like that made Sai lose his thoughts and also made him remember that it was a big day for the team tomorrow and he needed to get rest. Sai caught one last glimpse at his comrades and fell asleep.

The next morning, everybody had their bags and medication supplies on their backs and looks like they're ready to go. Yamato sensei had checked all of their weaponry and everything seems to be fine.

Sai suspiciously looked at the Uzumaki and thought that there was something different about him… What Sai didn't know was that Naruto was faking his emotions, trying to pretend he was a happy camper, like he always was. 'Is that Naruto? Why did he suddenly cheer up? … After what I've heard last-…'

"All right! Everything seems to be fine… let's move out!!" Yamato sensei burst out, as he was the first one out of all ninjas to leap unto the trees and into the forest.

Sai was, once again, disturbed out of his trail of thoughts.

Following their sensei, all three teammates also leaped high above the trees like the true ninjas they are. Sakura followed Yamato sensei in the front while the other two boys followed behind the squad.

"Be careful, everyone… a huge colony of bee hives are up ahead! It would take us forever to go around it, so we're going to go through the hives! So, watch your step! It _will _be slippery!" Yamato yelled as the team drew closer and closer into the area of the hives.

As soon as Sakura caught a glimpse of a hive, her body gained pressure as if she was carrying a huge boulder with her. Knowing that one of Sakura's fears are bugs, it was easy for Naruto, Sai and Yamato sensei to see that she was… afraid.

"Sakura…" Yamato whispered. "It's okay, just be on your toes."

As Sakura tried to listen, the carelessness in her came to reality. One of the branches she was about to leap onto was covered with very slippery honey. She tried to dodge, but it was too late.

A serious fall is created…

"SAKURA!!" Naruto wailed at the top of his lungs.

While Sakura kept free falling, Sai was able to make a move, _he didn't like his plan_ but it would be worth saving Sakura.

Since Sakura couldn't snap out of it, Sai leaped from tree to tree and finally… he managed to save Sakura.

He disliked how he did it very much though, as Sakura fell on top of him. He used his own body to act as a rebound from Sakura's fall. As much as he hated the situation, still showed no emotion upon his face.

While Naruto came down from atop the tree, he's face turned bright red as soon as he saw Sakura and Sai.

Sai took a glance at Naruto.

"Nice job, Sai! Let's get moving, we're slowing down every minute!" Yamato declared.

Sakura and Sai slowly got up and followed their sensei. While Naruto followed behind them, Sai turned around to face Naruto and said…

"Don't worry, Naruto. She's not my kind of girl."

'What was that about?' Naruto questioned in his mind. 'Does this mean that he knew all along…?'

Sai gained ahead of Sakura following Yamato sensei. While Sakura and Naruto was left behind following Sai and Yamato.

'Sai…' Naruto spoke in his thoughts.

'He… he knew all along?'

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	3. Orochimaru's Assasin

**Orochimaru's Assassin**

'Was that… Sai? What's going on?' Naruto thought as he starred at him, who is in front of him, just behind Yamato.

…While the squad continued their journey, Sakura felt clumsiness inside her. She thinks she is the weakest one out of all of them.

"I'm… I'm sorry, Yamato sensei…" The young Haruno whispered to the leader. "I… I was clumsy and I'm really slowing all of us down and we still have a long way to go… and-."

"Sakura…" Yamato disturbed. He turned his head and faced her. "Don't worry about it, it's fine. It's not like if it's your fault you slipped on that-."

"But sensei, I was the one who was careless!" Sakura raised her voice. Naruto was very surprised at her for stepping up like that.

…As she calmed herself down, she suddenly said, "It was a mistake that could've been avoided so easily. I was so careless, I-."

"It's not your fault, Sakura! Stop blaming yourself, everyone makes mistakes that is easily avoided!" Yamato raised his voice even higher.

Thinking of something to say, he burst out, " Don't you think Sasuke did that same mistake to leave the village… it was easily avoided too… just like that accident that just happened."

Everyone was silenced…

"…And we're trying to take him back, Sakura… so, stick to our mission, ok? Rescuing him from Orochimaru is like, Sai rescuing you from that fall you had." Yamato calmed himself down.

'He was right.' Sakura agreed in her thoughts.

Her sensei smiled towards her. Sakura smiled back. She let out a sigh and kept on going with the mission.

Naruto and Sai kept quiet for it was none of their concern to join the 'student-teacher' situation.

Sakura did not even want to think about her accident a while ago, but it seems complicated for her to even smile at the fact that she was rather safe than to be seriously injured right about now. It was all thanks to Sai that she is in one piece, leaping on tree-to-tree and not a single injury in her body at this moment. At least she could do was thank him for saving her life. So, she did so.

"Um, Sai… thank you."

Sai took a quick glimpse at Sakura… Naruto's eyes widened with shock. Sakura was never like that with Sai… at all. In fact, she hated Sai, somehow. She would always argue with him and Sai would never respond to her but call her names all the time. But what is she doing now?

"Thanks for what?" Sai replied with no emotion.

"You know… for saving me back there." Sakura shyly smiled at him. But Sai gave back his usual response, a fake smile.

"You're welcome… Sakura." Sai turned his head, showing his handsome face, and smiled again. Sakura couldn't resist smiling back at him as she remembered that he wasn't always like this with her most of the time.

Sakura seems to be attracted to the guy…

As Naruto watched helplessly in the background, he thought that he couldn't just watch and let his beloved be taken away from him… he needed to take action.

While the young blonde kept thinking of a strategy, Yamato sensed danger near the area. "Everybody, stop!" Yamato commanded as the team hesitated their leaping and quickly resting their feet at a nearby tree. "What's going on, sensei?" Sakura whimpered showing confusion upon her face. "Yeah, why are we stopping?" Naruto added.

"Look up there!" Yamato stretched his right arm, pointing high atop a tree. As their heads turned to the pointed tree, a kunai with a scroll sticker tied at the end was spotted. Sakura gasped as her hand touched the bottom of her lip, while Sai and Naruto prepared for an unexpected danger. Naruto's eyes searched everywhere to see if anything else was booby-trapped. "Does this mean that we…"

"Yes, Naruto. We've been spotted…" Sai answered him.

"Watch your steps everyone…" Yamato alarmed everybody.

Sakura briefly remembered her carelessness a while ago. She couldn't risk of having another one of her clumsy accidents. She did not want to be such a burden to anybody anymore. In order to achieve that goal of hers, she stayed alert and observed her every step and movement. She took careful precision at every second.

"As much as I hate to say this, but we will have to go around… this is a four-way kunai range! That means that there are three more of that…" Yamato, again, pointed to the tree, "…forming a prison-trap! If we were fool enough not to notice that before and went ahead without any warning…"

Yamato hesitated a little…

"…that trap would have set off, sensing our chakras and getting us… killed."

Dead silence surrounded the squad, creating an awkward situation. But not until Naruto stepped up and said, "Well, well… good thing you were there to spot them, right sensei?" Giving a huge smile, almost covering up his face.

Yamato smiled and nodded, but the expression on his face quickly wandered and seriousness had replaced it. After all, somebody _has_ spotted them. The squad still didn't know who or what have managed to spot them but it seems to be that whatever creature was that is relying on his booby traps instead of just showing his face and battle with them.

"He seems to be holding back…" Yamato whispered. "But don't let that hold your guard down, be alert everybody!"

Moments later…

"Man, this forest is crawling with booby traps!" Naruto complained as he tried to dodge a flying kunai. At that same moment, Naruto had another thought on his mind… Sai. What did he meant by saying 'she's not my kind of girl.' Those words echoed in his head as if it was an endless thought he couldn't get out of. He wondered if Sai knew that he loved Sakura… did he? Naruto did not know the answer but he has a strong feeling that Sai somehow knew about his secret.

While Naruto was in his own world, thinking of Sakura, Yamato sensei sensed movement from a nearby bush. He carefully reached for a weapon in the back of his pocket and quickly threw a kunai directly at the bush.

"REVEAL YOURSELF!" Yamato wailed.

The kunai went straight through the bushes and a shadow of a some-what creature quickly dashed into another tree. Everybody's heads turned, following the shadow and prepared for an attack. A maniacal laughter suddenly came out of nowhere.

"Did you ever think you could give me, even a single scratch with that pesky little kunai of yours?" The mysterious creature slowly walked out behind the tree, revealing his true form and giving Yamato a small smirk. Naruto somehow felt familiar after seeing the creature's face.

Yamato, on the other hand, gazed at him with a confident look on his face. "Your pretty naïve for a ninja in your level, aren't you?" Yamato blurted out, "…Kimimaro!"

Naruto gasped…

"WHAT! HIM…but, but… but I thought you were already dead, I thought Gaara had already killed you years ago!" Naruto was confused.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I surprise you, Naruto? I forgot to mention that I have managed to escape from that death and came back to Lord Orochimaru. Kabuto sensei found a cure to my illness back then and was able to revive me and now I'm back one hundred times better than I was before!" Kimimaro explained laughing uncontrollably.

"Oh, so your cheating death now!?" Naruto screamed with anger and pity in his voice.

"Well, come to think of it… yes." Kimimaro said smarting off of Naruto.

Naruto's face grew in anger…

"And now that I am stronger and full of life, I can now break you in half like the toothpick you are. No more disturbances, no more hesitating. Your journey of rescuing the Uchiha will come to an end. Right here, RIGHT NOW!!" Kimimaro grabbed out a bone out of his left shoulder and leaped towards Naruto. He needed to find a way to counter attack.

The Uzumaki performed a hand sign and yelled out, "Multi Shadow-Clone j-…huh?" A failed attempt was created as the boy opened his eyes, gazing at his sensei in front of him who was protecting him by shielding him out from Kimimaro's attack. "Naruto… listen to me! Sakura, Sai and yourself go on ahead. This is my fight. Go on finish the mission. I can take care of this guy by myself. Go after Sasuke! When I'm finished with _this_ bag of bones, I'll catch up with you guys. Understand?" Yamato turned his head and gave Naruto a similar smile he gave him before. "Now, GO!"

"WHAT ARE YOU, CRAZY?" Sakura yelled out, making everybody turn their heads. "We can't just leave you, sensei! A true shinobi never leaves behind a comrade at risk!"

"But I'm not at risk, Sakura! I can take care of myself. I'll be catching up with you guys in no time…now please, GO! Go after Sasuke, now!" Yamato struggled as Kimimaro's bone weapons kept pushing him back. But luckily, Yamato managed to flip high up in the air, keeping a safe distance away from Kimimaro.

"Sai! Sakura! Naruto! Go on ahead! This is my fight, my battle!" The brave sensei glanced at the three genins, "GO!" he screamed with venom in his voice.

The three teammates looked at each other and nodded. Sakura has never seen Yamato sensei acting like this before. It's as if he was so glad he had a chance to fight with Kimimaro.

The young genins began to leave the battlegrounds…

But at the last second, Kimimaro sprung into action and desperately went after Naruto. "You won't get away this time, you pesky little twerp!!"

With Sai's great speed, he leaped in front of Kimimaro and quickly defended Naruto. Sakura gazed in amazement while Sai bravely punched the face of the enemy. Sai, again, saved another life of a comrade. First, it was Sakura's fall, and now it's Naruto?

Inner Sakura kicks in Sakura's head. 'Wow! It's totally Sai's day today! He's saving everyone's butts! It's really a good thing he's in _our_ side. CHA!' Inner Sakura complimented Sai as Kimimaro slammed against the hard, dirty ground, creating a thick, massive pile of smoke made from the dirt beneath the forest floor that Kimimaro smashed into.

Naruto blankly starred at Sai with surprise in his face…

"Come on, Naruto. Let's go, Sakura! Before he comes back up and try to attack us again." Sai led the team deep into the forest until they slowly disappeared at the sight of their leader, Yamato. The brave sensei was left with the enemy…

Blank silence came upon the isolated area…

The smoke that surrounded the two slowly began to blow away. Leaving Yamato and Kimimaro standing face to face at the heart of the forest.

'No… not again! He got away just like he did years ago… oh well, no matter. I guess I'll just have to finish this one first.' Kimimaro thought as he searched the area for any sign for the Uzumaki and the others. He gave Yamato a strange look and smiled.

"What are _you_ smiling about? You just got hit by one of my comrades." Yamato starred at him with such deceiving look in his face.

"I'm just so excited I get to battle you today!!" Kimimaro smiled devilishly as the curse mark printed on his chest spread throughout his body as if the mark was devouring his flesh. Yamato's body froze at the sight of the mutant creature standing before him. Kimimaro's eyes changed to a yellow, cat-like form and his bones grew out of his body forming colossal horns stretching high above his head. Yamato couldn't believe what he's eyes are seeing right now. Kimimaro had completely transformed to a hideous freak.

'He's chakra level is completely changed. Where did it come from? How is this even possible? What is he?' These questions haunted Yamato's mind.

Kimimaro stood in an attacking pose. He gladly smiled and yelled out, "Vengeful Strike! Bracken Dance!!" He ran towards Yamato with fierce eyes and great speed.

"NOW, DIE!!"

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	4. Yamato vs Kimimaro

**Yamato vs. Kimimaro**

"Um… Naruto." Sai blurted out of nowhere. It was strange for him to actually talk to Naruto with such a calm and friendly tone. While the three continued their journey on retrieving the Uchiha, they still have not forgotten their leader, Yamato, who is risking his life right now to achieve the goal of the mission.

"Hmm? What is it?" Naruto said with a questioned look.

"Tell me, who is this Kimimaro of which you and Yamato sensei speak of earlier today?" It was very unusual for Sai to just ask Naruto for information. He always knew everything and now it was very awkward for him to just ask like that.

"Hmm… Kimimaro…" Even just the thought of Kimimaro made Naruto quiver in disgust. "Kimimaro is one of Orochimaru's assassins. He's a very powerful creature who uses his bones for fighting utensils and also armor. It is his… Kecko Genkai. He is the only one in his clan who has this ability. Now, I have no idea how he survived Gaara's sand back then and I also don't know how Kabuto was able to cure his illness but this I know for sure… that Yamato sensei will definitely beat him!" Naruto held out a confident thumbs-up to Sai and gave him a huge smile.

On the other side of the adventure, Yamato and Kimimaro fought and fought for their lives. They have been fighting for hours now. Neither one of them have given up.

…

Yamato hid behind a tree. He thought of a different strategy to throw at the enemy.

"Come out, come out! You weak piece of garbage!" Kimimaro kept insulting Yamato to try and convince him to come out of his hiding spot.

Kimimaro felt disturbance behind him. He turned around but nothing was there. Another from his left side… then again, nothing. 'What is this trick you're planning, Yamato?' He felt like he was being toyed by him. "Show yourself!" Kimimaro grew frustrated.

"Show yourself, coward!" He again yelled. As he tried so hard to look for Yamato, a shadow has cast upon his mutant self. He looked up. He's eyes widened when he saw Yamato coming towards him holding a kunai on his right arm.

"Ahhh!" Yamato let out a battle roar.

"Oh, no you don't!!" Kimimaro's horns, which are made out of his own bones, stretched even higher and bigger, forming two huge, sharp sword-like features that blocked Yamato's body.

Yamato's stomach was completely pierced through Kimimaro's horns. Kimimaro smiled gently…

He was about to make a nasty remark to Yamato but all of a sudden…

_POOF!_

As he slowly looked up at his head, a hard tree stump had replaced Yamato's corpse. Kimimaro's face squinted and was filled with bitter anger. 'Substitution!' He thought.

While Kimimaro was too busy being distracted about the situation, multiple numbers of kunai came flying in the direction of Kimimaro, making him the target. He tried to dodge quickly but unfortunately, it was too late for him.

"Aaaaahhhhhh!!" Kimimaro yelled his loudest as the kunais hit every visible part of his body with a direct hit. The sound of his voice echoed throughout the forest. "You… you will pay for this." Kimimaro said very weakly. This time, it wasn't substitution or any of his tricks at all. Yamato definitely gave Kimimaro a critical hit.

"You foolish mortal! You will pay for what you have done to me!!" It was very incredible for Kimimaro to still have strength left in him to smart talk Yamato and to still have one last shot to give him. And the fact that they have been fighting for hours and hours, both of their chakra was dangerously low.

Both rivals had one last shot left in them…

"You will lose to me, Yamato!" Kimimaro had trouble breathing. "I would think twice if I were you, Kimimaro. You're almost out of chakra and let's not forget that you are the one who was foolish enough to fall from my trap!" Yamato smiled making him remember the kunais sticking out of his body.

"SHUT UP! YOU…"

"AHHHHH!!" Both cried a battle roar. charging towards each other.

Will either one make it out of the collision? Will Yamato survive? Or Kimimaro?

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	5. Sakura Noticed

**Sakura Noticed**

"Do you guys ever think that sensei will be... all right?" Sakura told her teammates with worry surrounding her mind.

"Of course, Sakura! Yamato sensei will never give up _that_ easily." Knowing Yamato was still not here and hours have already passed, Naruto still had the guts to smile cheerfully towards Sakura.

His smile was filled with such sweetness and cheer, Sakura had to daydream at the moment. Naruto gazed at her with a questioned look.

'Why the heck is she still smiling at me?' But he still smiled back anyways. With the two just stayed smiling at each other, Sai was the only one left to be in charge of everything.

'Oh man, why do I have to be stuck with _these_ lovebirds?' Sai rolled his eyes as he tried to ignore the two's daydreaming.

Sakura and Naruto finally had their eyes to each other but unfortunately; they were so blinded with one's love that they couldn't concentrate on where they're leaping. So, the two of them unexpectedly came across a huge tree blocking their path. "Naruto! Sakura! Watch out!" Sai yelled with his face worried. Naruto and Sakura managed to come back to reality and dodged the tree.

"What's wrong with you two all of a sudden? Did you even see that tree coming at you two?" Sai said with no emotion making the two turn their heads around and look at him with embarrassment.

'What was I doing!? Was I really daydreaming about… Naruto? WOAH! Well... look on the bright side; he does like me back… does he? CHA!' Inner Sakura couldn't resist staring at Naruto's handsome face, his beautiful blue eyes and the guy's confident attitude towards everything.

…Sakura noticed Naruto's quick glimpse at her. She giggled a little bit then turned her head away before she gets lost daydreaming again and another tree might appear at them out of nowhere.

Is Naruto the one Sakura truly loved? Is _he_ the prince charming she has been waiting for to rescue her?

'I know he always have liked me since we were in the academy, but does he still… I mean does he love me back?' Sakura had a frown in her face that she tried to hide from Naruto and Sai.

But at a blink of an eye, something popped into Sakura's head. The face of a guy she once loved, the one who left the village, the guy who betrayed his comrades, the one who told her she was always annoying, the reason why her heart broke and also the reason why Naruto, Sai and herself are in this mission right now…

…Sasuke Uchiha…

He was the one who brought life in her. He was her first love. She loved him so much that she tried to offer him help to get his revenge just to make him come back. Sakura had flashbacks from the time Sasuke left her, the village and everyone in it. She had cried to her fullest back then. He was the beat that kept her heart going… was he?

…or was it Naruto?

Naruto was the only guy who always stayed by her side. He even risked his own life trying to bring Sasuke back to her. And even though he failed that attempt, he still kept his promise. It was a promise of a lifetime after all. Naruto was definitely the guy of her dreams…

"Naruto, Sakura…" Sai muttered, "We're close… I can sense it."

If the three teammates are close, that means Sasuke is close too. Naruto smiled with confidence, "This time for sure! We'll get Sasuke back! You can count on it, Sakura!"

Sakura was speechless as soon as Naruto said those words. Even Sai had nothing to say to him.

'I hope your right, Naruto.' Sakura thought with small doubt.

…

Moments later, Sakura, Naruto and Sai had reached their destination… Orochimaru's lair. The surroundings were covered in the quiet and stillness. The lair sat in a devastated prairie. Mountains, rocks and dirt covered everything in sight.

The three ninjas hid behind a huge boulder. "Okay, so here's the plan…" Naruto started. As Sakura and Sai tried to pay attention to him, Sakura thought Naruto was somewhat different compared to what he was before. She remembered the time Team 7 was still in session with Kakashi sensei.

'Naruto acted so childish back then and… look at him now. That's a huge difference right there. Acting all mature, with a serious look on his face and… and... oh, who am I kidding! He looks so manly talking to us like that as if he was the leader of this squad or something…' Sakura kept talking and talking inside her mind, not even realizing what the plan was.

On the other hand, while Naruto continued his lecture about his idea of how to sneak into the lair, he noticed Sakura kept staring at him and giving him this odd smile that practically creeped him out. But Naruto familiarized that smile… it was the same smile he always gave Sakura when he usually daydreams about her. 'Is this smile what I think it is?' Naruto gazed blankly into space…

Sai let out a huge sigh. It was so huge that both Naruto and Sakura apparently lost their thoughts and quickly turned to Sai, pretending to agree with the plan.

'I really need Yamato sensei back.' Sai desperately thought as Sakura and Naruto tried their best to hide their emotions from each other. They were both bright red while trying to look away.

"Okay, Naruto. We're sticking to your plan." Sai agreed while Naruto nodded.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto made a shadow clone of himself and made the clone sneak into Orochimaru's lair first, just in case there were any traps at the entrance.

Once the Naruto clone managed to get inside without having any trouble, the three ninjas went in after him.

Inside was a huge, large hallway that gave a path nowhere else but straight ahead. Candlelights were the only things that kept everything in sight. They carefully took their steps and followed the clone. There was something unusual about the place; there were no booby traps at all, no crazy things that pops up out of nowhere, no nothing. At least right about now, there should have been some kind of enemy trying to kill the three… but nothing seems to be wrong.

A couple of feet later, Naruto, Sai, Sakura and the clone came across a two-way path.

"I guess its time for us to split up, guys. Okay, so how about I go to the right and Sai, you and Sakura go to the left." Naruto whispered to his comrades.

"Um… why don't Sakura go with you, Naruto. That way she could help you with your injured ankle. I know you already recovered but just in case…" Sai fake smiled at him.

Little did Naruto know that he was just trying to bring the two together so he would get some normal time to himself and of course, get Naruto and Sakura to spill their affection for one another. "Uh… okay, whatever you say, Sai." Sakura said, nervously trying to agree with Sai's decision.

They all compromised and agreed. The three were on their way, Sai took the left path while Naruto and Sakura took right.

…

Everything was mostly dark, except for those candlelights hanging from the wall. But the lighting was so poor; Naruto and Sakura could barely see the path they're walking onto. "Man, I can't see with all the darkness…" Sakura said with a small voice.

"Well, my eyes got used to being in the dark, so I'm able to see a little bit. Just try to follow my voice, Sakura."

"Okay, Naruto. I'll tr-." A low thud was heard.

"Sakura? Was that you? What was that?" Naruto panicked.

As he turned his head around to look at Sakura, he's body trembled at the sight of a faced down figure on the ground.

"Sakura! Are you okay? What happened?" Naruto carefully walked over to her and lend out a helping hand. He knelt down on his knee and held her face as if it was a delicate porcelain. "Sakura, what happened?" Naruto worried.

The young Haruno gazed at his face in front of her and quickly laughed nervously and said, "Uh… hehehe, I was um… tripped. I couldn't see anything and I was trying to follow your voice and I didn't see that huge rock in front of me and-."

"Sakura…" Naruto glanced at her with his eyes full of relief. She glanced back, returning the favor, making her stop babbling about what had happened. "…Thank goodness you're fine. I though something bad had happened to you. Here…" Naruto stood up and held out his hand.

"What's that hand for?" Sakura asked with her eyes twinkling.

"From now on, I'm going to guide you to the way, so you won't get hurt or anything..."

"So, you're going to hold my hand on the way?"

Naruto nodded with a smile on his face. Even though she couldn't see Naruto's smile, she still took his hand and he led the way.

As Sakura touched his palm, she could feel the muscle that relaxes within him. It felt like heaven the moment she held Naruto's hand, the poor girl almost fainted.

'CHA! This is officially the sign that he loves me back! I mean, we look like a total couple here, holding our hands and stuff…sigh I'm totally falling for him…' Inner Sakura was just out of control, saying all these thoughts, but Sakura didn't want to show any affection while walking into the darkness with Naruto.

A sudden stop is created when Naruto's eyes widened with a surprise.

A familiar shadow stood still in front of them.

Sakura noticed that big purple bow and that spiked hair of his, anywhere. And Naruto has never mistaken those red eyes, forming a sharingan.

It was none other than… Sasuke Uchiha.

"Well, well, well… are _you two_ finally a couple?" Sasuke teased.

"What!? Uh…of…course not! I was just leading her 'cause she couldn't see anything! You idiot!!" Naruto turned red while trying hard, explaining to Sasuke what's going on, with his fist waving in front of him.

"Anyways, are you guys going to try and rescue me again? If I were you, I would've given up the first time… This is a total waste of time, I told you already! I'm not going back!!"

"YES, YOU WILL!!" Naruto snapped back.

* * *

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	6. Sasuke's Determination

**Sasuke's Determination**

"Sasuke, don't you think it was just a misunderstanding to leave the leaf village back then? Don't you think it was a mistake leaving _us_? That snake, Orochimaru, is just playing on you! YOU HAVE TO GO BACK!... we need you… Sasuke." Sakura's eyes drowned with tears as she tried her best to confront the stubborn Uchiha.

"SHUT UP, SAKURA! This is the path I chose for my life now and I'm going to stay no matter what you guys tell me!" Sasuke's eyes raged with anger. His sharingan almost lit up most of the room.

"There's still a chance of you going back, Sasuke! You might not know this, but this revenge stuff is full of…"

"Don't you dare say that, Naruto! You don't know what I felt when the most horrible moment of my whole, entire life occurred! You don't even know me that well, so don't you even try telling me this revenge is not worth it, because to me… it's the only reason why I exist in this retched world… to restore my clan's pride!"

"To restore your…WHAT? Did you even think your own clan would want you to do these horrible things you're doing right now? What would _you_ do if your own family was here to see that you betrayed the village, huh? Just to get your dumb revenge on Itachi… You know, Sakura was right, Sasuke! This _is_ a mistake. In fact, it's the _worst_ mistake you've ever done!!"

Awkward silence fell into the three's surroundings. Sasuke thought it would be better to stick with Orochimaru. Sasuke wasn't afraid, he was rather confident and he only wanted to get his hands on the Sanin's powers and strength. He couldn't care less what would've happened to his comrades, to his own best friends, to anybody at his point. But even though he betrayed his home, there was still some affection towards Sakura and Naruto deep down in his heart. Eventually, it just ticks him off when they always stand in his way.

Sasuke reached out a weapon on his back, took out a sharp sword and waved it in front of Naruto and Sakura.

"Snap out of it, Sasuke! Come on, I don't want to fight you again!" Naruto yelled, trying to lower his temper.

"Ha! That's because you always lose to me! Isn't that right?" Sasuke teased.

"No, Sasuke! I don't want to fight you because I'm tired of it!... Do you even know what's always in my mind every time I go up against you? … I hate it! I hate it so much…" Naruto's voice suddenly lowered down and he's eyes became watery. "You… you were the only person who understood how I felt not having a family of my own…

…you were my best friend…"

"Yeah, well I've changed. I'm not the same Sasuke you knew."

Naruto bowed his head and a small tear came rolling down his cheek. "…you were like a brother to me. You and Sakura accepted me for who I am. Even though I didn't have a family of my own… I considered you guys one…"

Sasuke showed a surprised look on his face, stunned by what Naruto had said. The Uchiha's sharingan surprisingly turned off and his sword was lowered down.

Amazing what Naruto can do to calm down the one and only, Sasuke Uchiha. He was always the only one who understood and befriended him.

…Suddenly, Sasuke's impression towards them turned quite different.

Sasuke's head bowed slightly, facing Sakura's and Naruto's feet. He saw dried tears under their feet that made the dirt look soft.

'Naruto dedicated to bring me back… even though he failed several times, he still keeps… coming back… to me. When is he going to stop… will he even stop _at all_? W-what am I even doing? I haven't felt like this since… since I left the village… what's going on with me? I'm not like this at all…'

'…But, for some reason… I think I would want to go back.' Sasuke felt like he was being pushed towards a different faith, finally getting out of the darkness he is in for several years. He is somewhat walking towards the path of a faith he always wanted, towards the light, instead of blank darkness… towards… Naruto. Sasuke couldn't resist what is inside of him. Deep pressure attacked the poor Uchiha's body. He knelt down to the ground as if he had collapsed.

Naruto and Sakura watched blankly as he knelt down on his knees on the ground with his sword attached on his right hand.

Dead silence…

…

The awkwardness broke when Naruto walked slowly, step by step to the direction of Sasuke.

"What do you say, buddy? Care to come back?" More tears came down onto Naruto's cheeks as he held his hand out for Sasuke. "Will you…will you come… with us? You know what will happen if you say no, right… Sasuke?" He spoke those words with a warm smile, having the expression he always had with everybody. That smile was pretty convincing, although the massive tears that filled Naruto's eyes quickly flowing down his cheeks and staining his orange jacket made an agonizing, mixed emotion upon the Uzumaki's face.

Sasuke did not speak a word. He truly did not know what to do at that very moment, will he accept Naruto's offer or not?

Naruto went silent. His hand was motionless, still waiting for the Uchiha's response.

"Sasuke, PLEASE!" yelled Sakura.

"Please… please come…" she whispered.

Both men did not turn their heads to look at her, but they listened carefully to the words Sakura spoke.

"Oh, Sasuke, please stop this and come back… with us…" Her tears were as colossal as Naruto's. In fact, she had more liquid in her eyes than Naruto did. She desperately needed Sasuke back, both her and Naruto did.

"Sakura… Naruto… why?" The spiked haired Uchiha finally spoke. His heart finally had an urge to free himself in order to speak. "Why have you… come all this far… just for me? … All I did to all of you was betray you and the village too… So, why?"

Naruto rubbed his face, wiping all his tears. So did Sakura. Both of them smiled warmly and said…

"You left out on one thing you did for us, Sasuke… being our precious friend."

The two spoke those words as if they've rehearsed it. Having those smiles printed on their faces definitely is a sight to be seen.

Sasuke held his head up, staring straight at Sakura and Naruto, his former teammates. With Naruto still had his right hand reaching out to Sasuke.

At that very moment, the Uchiha did not know a single thing to do. Will he reach out to Naruto and once again be with his true friends? Or will he rather stay and fulfill his long, last dream of defeating his own brother, Itachi? Sasuke wanted to stop his foolishness right from the start but also wanted to avenge at the same time. He couldn't control himself back then, so he, instead, went to Orochimaru.

Sasuke's right hand slowly reached for Naruto's palm.

'Could this be… what I think it is?' thought Naruto as he, too, reached for the Uchiha's hand.

Sakura starred blankly at the Sasuke. Inch by inch, Naruto and Sasuke's hands came together as if there was a force pulling them closer together.

Sasuke hesitated as he tried to grab the blonde's hand, but he still kept his hand going for his. He wanted to get out of Orochimaru's path once and for all… and… now was the moment…

…to be released from that.

"Naruto, I…" As Sasuke attempted to speak, a flying shadow had cast over the room. Everybody prepared for danger.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk… oh, what a pity! What is all this drama, Sasuke? You better not be making new friends. Lord Orochimaru will not be pleased; you know that, don't you?" The mysterious voice walked just behind the Uchiha, revealing his true identity.

"Kabuto…" Sakura whispered.

"So nice of you to still remember me, Sakura."

"What the heck are _you_ doing here!?" yelped Sakura.

"You took the words right out of my mouth. Ha! I was about to say the same thing." Kabuto smiled devilishly as he walked confidently beside Sasuke.

Naruto backed away as soon as he laid his eyes on the unexpected assassin. He could not believe another one of Orochimaru's men is trying to stop them again.

'I wonder what happened to Yamato sensei, he should've been back.' Naruto wondered worriedly as Kabuto reminded him of Yamato sensei and Kimimaro's battle.

"Sasuke, don't tell me you're about to quit, when you're so much closer to beating Itachi." Kabuto whispered as he tried to prepare himself for battle. "Don't forget about your revenge… your dream… we wouldn't want to lose that, would we?"

Sasuke got up from his daydreaming. The deep pressure within the pit of his stomach was still there as he struggled to stand up. "Right now, my dream still lives on in my heart…" he responded back to Kabuto.

Kabuto then smiled slightly, and then with great amount of speed, Kabuto ran towards Naruto attempting an attack.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto formed a hand sign and created twenty copies of himself. "Stay back, ok Sakura?"

She, then, nodded immediately.

Kabuto stabbed one of the clones, hoping it was the real one. But, sadly, it just '_poofed'_ away.

Kabuto continued to _'poof'_ away the clones and Naruto failed one attack after another but still kept making copies of him self.

Kabuto wanted to end this battle quickly, so he thought of another strategy to speed things up a bit. He planned to go after a weaker opponent. He figured that a hostage would be a faster way to get rid of them. 'Sakura, you're a perfect target.' Kabuto said inside his mind.

He dodged every attacking Naruto clones and targeted on getting his hands on Sakura. He jumped, flipped and defended himself, then managed to get a hold of the kunoichi.

Kabuto's right arm twisted hers at the back of her head and his other arm under her neck, so that she wouldn't make the slightest move.

"If you want you precious girlfriend back _alive_, you must leave this place and forget about taking Sasuke with you!" As Kabuto tried to threaten the young Uzumaki, he, then, added more pressure upon Sakura's neck, making her choke to death.

Naruto couldn't just watch his beloved slowly die in front of him. He needed to do something… quick. "You heartless-- GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF HER!!"

"Leave now or she'll die!" snapped Kabuto.

"N-Naruto…" coughed Sakura. "P-please, d-do not worry about… me. Even if I do die, you must get Sasuke…" Sakura struggled as she spoke in a dying tone. "Convince Sasuke to come back…"

"…it's a promise of a l-lifetime, remember?" She smiled with her dearest smiles, and then coughed even more as her face turned blue.

_Grrr…_

Kabuto snarled as he gripped even tighter onto Sakura's neck.

"Come on, Sasuke! Beat _him_ up already. So we can go on with this!" Kabuto demanded, yelling across the huge hallway.

The Uchiha stood blankly at the same spot he was on for the past ten minutes, giving Kabuto a bitter expression planted on his face. Sasuke closed his eyes and, once again, reached out for his sword.

Kabuto, then, smiled confidently as he watched Sasuke, suddenly, disappear into thin air.

'What an amazing speed.' thought Naruto. He took out a kunai out of his back pocket and stood in a defensive pose.

Hoping that Sasuke would attack Naruto,…

…the opposite happened.

Sasuke reappeared behind Kabuto and stabbed him in his back. The long, sharp sword pierced through the enemy's heart.

"Even though my dream of annihilating my own brother still lives on within me, doesn't mean you can go on hurting my friends." Sasuke whispered into Kabuto's ears. "It also doesn't mean that I can't defeat him without you _or_ any of Orochimaru's help. You've crossed the line the second you laid a finger onto Sakura…"

"It was a mistake to leave my home in the first place… I'm… I'm going… back now." He added.

* * *

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	7. An Old House: Part I

**An Old House: Part I**

Sasuke took out his bloody sword out of Kabuto's chest. The bloody stains that covered the sword dripped onto the dirty floor.

Kabuto's arms released the suffocating kunoichi and fell down on his knees, while Sakura grasped for air desperately as Naruto immediately came over to help her stand up right.

"You okay, Sakura?" Naruto asked worriedly. Sakura coughed a little, and then gave him thumbs up, meaning she's going to be all right.

Kabuto fell completely onto the ground, not making a single movement. "I-is he dead?" Naruto asked nervously.

"Hmph…he should." Sasuke smirked.

Sakura calmed down on her coughing and her face was returning to its normal color. She got on her knees beside Kabuto and pressed two fingers up his neck. "I could no longer feel any vibration, heartbeats, whatsoever inside his body. He's…done for." She sighed.

Sasuke had put away his sword and stood quietly.

Naruto and Sakura gazed at him with such a questionable expression in their faces.

"Naruto, Sakura…I…I accept your offer. I-I'm very sorry." Sasuke bowed his head and looked away, but the two still looked at him with a confused expression. "You know, for…everything. I'll go back now; it's time for this foolishness to stop. I guess it's about time you two finally convinced me to leave," his eyes still looking away.

Naruto's face immediately filled with enjoyment, with such happiness, that his eyes got watery all of a sudden. Sakura did the exact same thing. They both ran towards Sasuke and held him so tight; it doesn't even look like a hug anymore.

"Uh…I…I'm getting squished, Sakura…Naruto. Get…off."

As the two finally released Sasuke, their eyes was filled with tears, wanting to roll down their cheeks. Their countless missions to retrieve the Uchiha finally paid off. In several years, both Sakura and Naruto have dreamed for this moment. This moment, to be reunited with their teammate, comrade…friend, Sasuke Uchiha.

"Well, well, well, I guess I missed out on the action." An unexpected voice came out of nowhere.

Every head turned to look, predicting another enemy.

But Sai stood at the center of the hallway with bruises and scratches covering his body.

"W-what happened to you?" Sakura asked, walking towards him, thinking she could treat the injuries.

"Oh, this? I ran into some trouble on the way finding _that_ guy." Sai took a glance into Sasuke. "But I took care of it… So what's new here? Anything happen?" While Sakura tried to cure his bruises, curiosity filled his mind as his eyes wandered throughout the destruction that surrounded him.

"You're right on time, Sai! Sasuke had just beaten the snot out of Kabuto here and he's coming with us!" Naruto answered, giving him a huge smile. Sasuke didn't respond.

Sai replied with a fake smile. 'I see… I wonder how Naruto did it… or maybe it was Sakura…' He looked at Sakura then switched to the disappearing injuries in his arm.

After Sakura was done treating Sai, the four ninjas ran to the nearest exit out of the lair. Since Sasuke already knew the way out, there shouldn't be any problem finding the exit. Sakura explained everything to Sai what happened to them right from when the three of them got separated to the moment Kabuto appeared and how Sasuke agreed to Naruto. Well, everything except for the part that she and Naruto held hands. She tried to keep that one a secret and she hoped Naruto would too. But the fact that the two of them did held hands made their relationship towards each other even stronger than ever, even though it was just holding hands.

…

Half an hour passed. Everyone decided to camp out under the stars. They laid their bags and blankets throughout the open floor, and then made themselves comfortable.

"Hey, Sakura! You want me to tell scary stories to pass the time?" Naruto asked happily, hoping Sakura would agree.

"Uh…yeah, sure Naruto." Sakura replied with a sincere smile, making Naruto's expression jump for joy at the agreement.

Sasuke and Sai already fell asleep, not knowing that Sakura and Naruto were still up. The night drew close and Naruto and Sakura still told scary stories to each other.

"So how about that last story, Sakura? Pretty scary, huh?" Naruto gave the young Haruno a huge smile, which Sakura thought was…cute.

She, then, gave him a crooked smile. "Eh…kinda boring, Naruto." Sakura teased.

"What!? You're such a liar. You were really scared. I could tell." Naruto smirked.

"You're exaggerating. I was _not_ scared. _My_ story was so much better." Sakura giggled, as she lightly nudged Naruto's shoulder.

Soon after the giggling and chatting, both have stayed up all night gazing up into the stars.

"The sky is so beautiful, Naruto…" Sakura whispered as she lied down and covered herself with a blanket.

"Yeah, it's quite amazing. I didn't even know there would be this much stars in the sky. I never really paid attention to them."

"I could stay up all night just watching them and daydreaming."

"Me too."

Sakura and Naruto stayed gazing up into the sky. The bond that the two had for one another had become so strong, it might last for a long time…maybe even a lifetime. They've been friends since childhood and their relationship has been growing…

"Sakura…?" whispered Naruto. But there was no response. He got up and looked at her. He smiled wonderfully and whispered, "Hehe…so much for staying up."

He wanted to tell her…tell her tonight.

…But she had already fallen asleep.

…

The next morning, Naruto woke up with a slight disturbance.

"Hey, hey!...Naruto! Naruto! Wake up!"

Naruto opened an eye and saw Sasuke's face in front of him. "I'm too tired, five more minutes…" he moaned then fell asleep again.

'What a drag…I finally decided to come back and I have to baby sit _this_ knucklehead.' Sasuke sighed then kept poking Naruto and shaking his shoulder in an attempt to wake him up. 'Well…even though I have to put up with him, I actually miss these times back then.' He looked up at the other teammates and saw Sai having the same problem with Sakura.

Sai kept nudging her to wake up but she refused.

"So, how are you doing with Sakura, Sai?" Sasuke asked with a blank expression.

"Same thing as you're doing, they won't wake up."

"Let's go get water from the river." Sasuke suggested.

Sai and Sasuke took off to the nearest river and collected some water. They plan to do a dirty trick on Sakura and Naruto. They thought it would be cruel, but on the other hand, it was also for their own good.

* * *

**NEXT TIME: An Old House: Part II**


	8. An Old House: Part II

**An Old House: Part II**

Moments later, Sasuke and Sai were back with a bucket of water on each of their hands.

"Okay, ready Sai?" Sasuke asked and Sai nodded. "Go!" Sasuke ordered as the two of them spilled the chilling water onto their sleeping teammates.

Naruto and Sakura yelled immediately as they reached for something to wipe the cold water out of their clothes and faces.

"WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU GUYS!?" Naruto yelled standing up to Sai.

"Yeah! We were sleeping!!" Sakura taunted walking away from the wet area.

"Uh, Sakura, but it was for your own good. You and Naruto won't wake up. You two stayed up late last night, didn't you?" Sai corrected as the two's faces blushed bright red.

"Y-yeah, we did stay up….but…_you _guys didn't have to do this to us! You could've _simply_ waked us up nicely…hmph!" Naruto turned his head away.

"Uh…we _did_." Sai objected.

Naruto slightly turned to face Sai with an embarrassing look on his face. "Oh…uh… y-you did? Well…who cares!? We're all awake now, aren't we? LET'S GET ON WITH OUR JOURNEY, SHALL WE!" Everyone suddenly got Naruto's attention as he clumsily picked up the blankets, even though they were all wet. Everybody also gave him a curious look.

Not long after Naruto's episode, the group continued traveling home to Konoha. The journey took quite a long time. Naruto occasionally got frustrated while they jumped onto the large, canopy trees. Sakura calms him down by giving him her usual smack-on-the-head routine. But most of the time, she accompanies him, along with Sai and their new comrade, Sasuke Uchiha.

…

It's been two days, Konoha was very near. Everyone was very worried…of Captain Yamato. He never did show up to Orochimaru's lair. And he never followed the squad.

"Naruto, do you think Captain Yamato is all right?" Sakura unexpectedly brought up the subject. "Do you think he's still…" she gulped at the thought of her next saying, "…alive?"

The boy widened his eyes, a surprised expression. Naruto reminisced the image of his Captain and Kimimaro when the squad was about to leave the battleground. It took Naruto a few seconds to answer Sakura's concern.

"Um, we'll be coming across the area where Captain Yamato fought; we'll get some information there." He said, ignoring Sakura's question.

"Everyone, be on full alert when we get there." Sai said with a commanding tone in his voice.

Very deep down, Sai and Naruto was very worried, their facial expressions were quite obvious. The quiet atmosphere that surrounded the team became tense and awkward. After about a hundred more yards of jumping on top of trees, they finally halted into a full stop. Sakura stepped into the edge of the pool of light through the huge ferns in front of her. She couldn't help it but to gaze blankly at the image of the broken down trees, giant boulders scattered around the quiet battlefield and kunais sticking out of the ground covered in dried blood.

Naruto breathed in and out slowly just before he ordered everyone to look for Captain Yamato. It took them about a whole ten minutes before Sakura suddenly noticed a trail of dried blood leading towards an unfamiliar path of the forest.

"Naruto! Come…take a look." With her right arm pointing at the trail of blood, everyone gathered to see what she was talking about.

Naruto felt his jaw drop and Sai's eyes widened a bit.

"You think that's who I _think_ it is?" Sakura chirped, emphasizing the question.

"I think we should follow it." Naruto, again, ignoring Sakura's concern. But she doesn't appear to notice this.

The bloodstains were pretty noticeable, so it was easy to follow the trail. Unexpectedly, the group found themselves in an unknown area. Tall, huge ferns and bushes covered everything in sight; it's as if the place had never been walked on before. But amazingly, the blood trail led them to an unusual abandoned house.

The house was small; perfect for one person to live in. It was made of mere wood planks and tree barks, kind of like what an average human strength can build. Sakura and Sasuke investigated the outside perimeter while Naruto and Sai knock on the door if anyone was inside the old house.

Sai raised an arm and made a light knock on the front door.

No response.

He knocks again, a little harder this time.

Still, not a word for a reply. As soon as they were about to barge in, Sakura and Sasuke appeared together around the corner of Naruto's eye.

"What's the status?" Naruto chirped, sounding like a captain himself.

Sakura stepped forward. "Well, it looks like nothing's dangerous about this house, so…"

Sasuke interrupts, "So, it's fine. _But_, we noticed that there were some well-planted vegetables at the back of the house."

"I-I was getting to that part." Sakura scowled while she crossed her arms across her chest and faced away from Sasuke with a pout.

The Uchiha glanced at her with a _look _and proceeded with his speech. "Anyways, this is evidence that there is someone living here or at least, nearby. Did you two get a chance to go inside already?"

"Uh…we were getting to that part." Naruto muttered as he reached for the doorknob. He twisted the handle and pushed open the door. The interior was much different than they thought it would, but there was a bed in a cozy corner that immediately caught their eyes.

Sakura, Naruto, Sai and Sasuke all walked slowly inside, and towards the bed. It appeared to be that there was someone in it. That person had short brown hair, wide eyes and his body was covered with huge bruises and injuries. He was as still as a rock.

Sakura noticed the resemblance, and a tear immediately rolled down her cheeks. "C-captain?" she stuttered, her eyes getting watery. The others didn't realize the injured person in the bed, until Sakura did.

It was none other than, Captain Yamato.

"So, this is the 'Yamato' you guys are talking about earlier?" Sasuke remembered, "What happened to him?" he observed the bandages that covered the body in front of him. "Is he even alive." He said in a hushed tone, not knowing it was meant to be heard or not.

Sakura dashed beside her Captain and laid two fingers up his neck. She pressed slightly at his cold skin, being careful not to make any sudden mistakes, and felt a 'thump,' the slow beating of his heart. The beat continued at a very slow pace. She sighed and gave her sensei an oh-so-very light hug. She stood up and faced her comrades. "He's fine, he's in a good condition, but we better get him to Konoha; fast, to treat those really bad injuries." Sakura protested, glancing at the huge bruises at the body's chest and stomach.

Naruto glanced back and forth at Sakura and Captain Yamato. "It's amazing how Captain Yamato can take care of himself in a condition like that. I wonder how he did it." Naruto puzzled.

"I don't think he's the one who did all this to himself though, Naruto." Sai objected.

"Hmm? You think someone else did it?" Naruto replied, giving him a questionable look.

"Well, yeah…you think at a condition like that, he could wrap himself up into bandages? And the fact that there's a well-planted vegetable at the back of this house, do you also think he did those, when right now, I think he could barely move a finger… I think there's someone else that helped Captain Yamato, someone who lives here perhaps…"

"Hey, y-you're right, young man!" A husky voice came out of nowhere. Every head turned to the door to see who it was.

An old lady was carrying a bag of herbs stood at the front door, smiling. "A-are you all f-friends with this in-injured, young m-man?" Her voice was so low; the four ninjas barely heard her.

"Um…yes. Yes we are." Sakura said respectfully and the old lady's eyes turned to her attention, "We have been looking for our Captain in this forest for the past hour now and we've been very worried about him, until we saw this old house…and our captain, in here." She bowed her head and said, "Thank you, very much for taking care of him."

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**NEXT TIME: chapter 8: Welcome To Konoha!**


	9. Welcome To Konoha!

**Welcome To Konoha!**

The old lady that stood quietly at the door walked in slowly with her bag of herbs and medicine. "Oh, dearie, I believe you are mistaken." She spoke every word very slow and raspy. "I didn't exactly do everything to help this poor man. I had a little help with my grandson, Suzuki."

"S-Suzuki?" Sakura repeated.

"Oh, yes! He's my very trustworthy grandson. He helped me take good care of this man. In fact, he's mostly the one who contributed the most of taking care of him. By the way, what is his name anyway?" The old lady's words were quiet as ever. Everyone stood still. As soon as Sakura was about to answer her question, another voice interrupted before any sound came out of her lips.

"Y-Yamato… is my name." He struggled as he held onto the bed, trying to get up. Everybody was surprised when they saw the captain rising from his long slumber. He was pretty shocked himself when he looked around the spinning room and saw Sasuke standing right beside him. He took a good look at the guy and congratulated the team in his thoughts, until a searing pain attacked his chest, then he quickly let out a small grunt.

"Captain!" Sakura worried. "Are you all right?"

"Huh? Oh, I'm okay Sakura. Thanks anyway… I guess this wound didn't recover at all, did it? Well, we should get going to Konoha then, shall we?"

"We should. Thank you for taking care of him, umm…"

"Oh, you can call me grandma Chizu, if you like." Then grandma gave Sakura a delightful, wrinkled smile.

…

Naruto waved up two hands and signaled grandma Chizu a warm goodbye. Sakura followed next, then Captain Yamato while the grandma returned the favor. Sai and Sasuke smiled as best as they could and moved on. The journey to Konoha was very long. The team was ready for a warm welcome, some good rest and Naruto was, of course, very ready for some delicious Ichiraku's ramen.

…

It took them about four days and a half to get back to Konoha, the team looked prepared when they saw Konoha's gate about a mile away from them. Sasuke had this look in his face that did not look confident and Sakura noticed this right from the start. It's been about a couple of years since he came back to his homeland. Considering that he left the place just to get revenge, people might treat him as a traitor for life. Not to mention the fourth hokage's reaction when he shows up out of nowhere. It would be really hard to be in Sasuke's position right now.

A couple more feet away from the gate, Naruto already started to smile for that ramen.

The huge gate started to open as the team stopped to make their entrance.

Sasuke continued to make this unconfident expression of his, and tried to concentrate on something different. A wide crowd appeared lining up on the side as the gate completely opened. Sasuke couldn't move an inch as the team started to head on to the crowd. He absolutely did not know what to do next. He needed to do something, something quick… He started thinking that going back to Konoha was somewhat a bad decision of his.

The Uchiha took a step forward…

…and he knew just what to do…

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**NEXT TIME: Chapter 10 "Lady Hokage"**


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